Bamboo screens and flooring firm opens service centre
Growth in demand for eco-friendly bamboo panelling produced by a Redditch firm has seen expansion into new premises.
IQ Studios manufactures and supplies architectural bamboo and palm wall and ceiling panels as well as ecologically sustainable modular carpeting for the commercial interiors industry.
It is increasingly being used by fit-out companies and commercial property investors across hotels, hospitality, healthcare, education, services offices, industrial sites and corporate offices.
As a result, IQ Studios needed to expand beyond its existing 10,000 sq ft Redditch factory and to open up a service centre.
Directors Angie and Rob Haynes contacted commercial property agency John Truslove to help them find the right premises.
And the company has now taken 1,100 sq ft of warehouse and factory space on the North Moons Moat industrial estate in Redditch.
Rob Haynes, operations director of IQ Studios, said: “Our activity in the industry, despite the Covid pandemic crisis, has grown exponentially to include manufacturing of bamboo panelling.
“We already manufacture Plyboo brand bamboo panels in Redditch so it made business sense to seek a suitable industrial property that would allow us to build a dedicated service centre space to operate close to our factory.”
IQ Studios plans to further expand manufacturing to include eco-friendly furniture and will be working exclusively with Redditch and Midlands-based manufacturers and service providers wherever possible, said Mr Haynes.
Angie Haynes, IQ Studios’ product developer and director of design, added: “It’s important to us that we work with local businesses; we value the opportunity to expand our services and our eco-friendly product manufacturing using local companies.
“It just makes good business sense, and we look forward to employing local people going forward; there is a wealth of talented trade professionals in the Redditch area.”
The company now employs more than 25 people at its Redditch factory and four more at its new service centre at Unit 19 on Thornhill Road.
Ian Parker, joint managing director at John Truslove, sealed a five year lease, at £10,200 a year, for the unit’s owner.
He said: “IQ Studios are enjoying significant growth in demand for their distinctive bamboo flooring and screens and we are delighted to have enabled their further expansion.
“A base on the North Moons Moat estate is ideal for their plans to recruit local manufacturers as the company continues its growth. Rob and Angie had very specific needs for their business and our extensive knowledge of the local commercial property market meant John Truslove was in an ideal position to help their business take the next step.”
Solicitors Kenneth Curtis & Co acted for IQ Studios.
